Where the "application" and "process" phases of development in Lost Without You was largely a work of individual achievement, the "approval" and "issuance" of the unconventional "passports" in Higher Groundwere designed to grow the POstables together, while guiding them ever closer to their "shining lights."

Wilderness proven, Eleanor's potato, as well as Gabe's letter to Hattie, were the tangible "passports" by whichNorman and Rita, andOliver and Shane, "secure[d] the attainment" of the "shining light"---more full and complete connection to one another.

Alternative Passports

It was the things Eleanor left behind that made all the difference---Gabe's letter to Hattie left for Oliver and the potato that Norman and Rita "raised" (we’re excluding the blender as it points to something else). Both items acted as "passports," aiding the POstables in crossing relationship-based boundaries into new, and even more intimate, spaces in their relationships.

Norman & RitaLost Without You may have proven that Norman and Rita possessed the ability to work well together independently and in a professional capacity, but it remained unclear whether other not the pair would be able to do so in something as high-stakes and personal as raising a living thing. ​As Shane observed in Higher Ground, Norman and Rita "[weren't] ready to take the next step in their relationship, so they...created a sort of family with a surrogate potato." And the little family they created with what was once Eleanor's pet became a crash course in "parenting," requiring them to determine the type of potato they had, and how to care for it. Answering these questions and "raising" their potato acted as the "passport" that secured Norman and Rita's bond informally, prompting Norman to eventually make it permanent and formal through their engagement.

Marriage was a topic that Ramon indirectly breached during that first poker night observing that after a year in a relationship, "[Norman and Rita] would be married with twins by now..." in his home country. As Norman points out they "have a potato." But much like the Director got Norman thinking in Lost Without You, it seems that Ramon got Norman to begin questioning why he had yet to make that commitment to Rita, especially since he is, as Ramon so astutely observed "very fortunate" to share life---and a potato---with her. Notice that when Norman proposes he wants "to raise a family, and have a place for them to grow---talking about kids now, not potatoes." It's a direct connection between his discussion with Ramon and the conclusion to which Norman's careful consideration clearly led.

But I'm sure that it wasn't just successfully parenting Eleanor's potato that moved Norman towards the decision to propose to Rita. The situation with Gabe and Hattie, their story of love and loss, the long-term effort to reunite them, and the very similar circumstances playing out in real-time between Shane and Oliver, also must have influenced his decision in a profound way. ​

Oliver & ShaneThe outcome of their Wilderness journeys in Lost Without You established Shane and Oliver's relationship on a solid foundation, only to find their bond placed under intense strain in Higher Ground. In order for their relationship to "bloom to its full potential" they needed some kinks worked out, not the least of which were their individual tendencies to hang onto the "seen," needing to latch onto their "unseen"---but firmly established---connection instead. In this context, the term "passport" took on a literal and figurative meaning for the pair, revealing to them the true nature of “what they have” as a result of the letter Eleanor left behind.

Directed to Oliver, Gabe's letter, and the promise he made to find Gabe and tell him "not to be too hard on himself, that [Hattie] knew that he loved her" drove Oliver's efforts in Shane's absence, committed to fulfilling the last promise he made to her. It was a commitment that in the course of fulfilling, Oliver experienced the full range of his humanity, from great joy to great despair, as he attempted to keep hope alive for what he could not see (his connection to Shane and her return) through something that he could (reuniting Gabe and Hattie).

And when Shane hadn't returned home by the time they located Gabe, he went to work attempting to locate Hattie. Little did he know that he would have to cross state lines to finally find both the women he was looking for. In this sense hope was Oliver’s “passport” and it was with waning---but nonetheless striving---hope that he eventually traveled to D.C. after Shane.

When Shane said, "I'll be back" it was her unwavering promise to return home, one she fully intended to keep, because “[Oliver] didn’t have to say that he loved her…[Shane] knew.” And it was this knowledge, along with Oliver’s pen, that she exited the country.

Departing, she took two "passports" with her---a formal government issued one and an informal Oliver-issued one. The former, “authorized travel to foreign countries, authenticated [Shane’s] identity, U.S. citizenship, [and] right to protection while abroad,” as well as “secured her right to re-enter the United States.” The latter---Oliver’s pen---carried with it an ability to travel into new physical territory, while at the same time reaffirming her identity and connection to Oliver, securing the protection (or guarding) of her heart while abroad, as well as securing her return to Oliver and his heart when the time came.

Using Oliver’s pen to write letters kept her hope and connection to him alive while she was abroad, along with the belief that Hattie was still alive, the truth of which Shane used everything at her disposal to ascertain. Shane and Oliver's drive to reunite the couple, even while a world apart, was another bond holding them together. But by the time she reconnects with Oliver in D.C., the strength of Shane’s resolve had diminished from “she knew” to “hoping she was worth waiting for.” It was a state of affairs only made more tenuous when Oliver "revoked" her "passport" taking his pen back---and her hope---along with him it appeared.

Yet there was something curious happening during Shane and Oliver's reunion in the DLO. Where Oliver held onto reuniting Hattie and Gabe, and Shane held onto her government- and Oliver-issued passports, it was the "unseen" content of their hearts that proved the most powerful "passports" of all, revealing that neither of their hearts had truly lost hope in each other. It was their hearts---and their time apart---that allowed them to truly see "what they have" together, a bond that transcends objects and trinkets. This revelation allowed them to cross into the territory of "what [next]," a place where clarity and vision is empowered to chart their path forward, together.

Gabe’s letter to Hattie ultimately showed Shane and Oliver the true nature of “what they have”---their deep, "unseen" connection---a reality they might not have fully discovered or embraced if not for the aide of Gabe’s letter to Hattie, which Eleanor left behind to be delivered “right on time” for both couples.

By the end of Higher Ground, both Norman and Rita, and Oliver and Shane, crossed into new territory in their relationships, which in the process of traversing revealed the true depth and strength of their bonds. And while Eleanor's contributions appear peripheral at first glance, they were, in fact, the mechanisms by which these truths came to "light" for the POstables.

Wow Chandel, this series of posts are mind blowing amazing! Who would have thought that the first mention of Eleanor way back in the canon would become, not only a means for our POstables passports to each other, but their very own Divine Delivery. God Bless You Eleanor!

Reply

MWH

5/26/2017 12:34:25 pm

Well thought out. Very poignant considering how out of loss Shane and Oliver could truly find each other.

Reply

Patsy

5/26/2017 01:37:48 pm

One of your most profound insights! I just cannot wait to see what Martha has in store for our Postables in 8 and 9!!!!

Reply

An Appreciative Fan

5/26/2017 02:00:47 pm

This tie to passports and Eleanor is wonderful. I really loved this series.

Reply

Victoria Garzione

5/26/2017 05:13:27 pm

Loved how you intertwined Oliver's pen with Shane as a passport. Just beautiful.